Maurice of Byzantium

Maurice of Byzantium (539-27 November 602) was the Emperor of the Byzantine Empire from 582 to 602, succeeding Tiberius II of Byzantium and preceding Phocas of Byzantium.

Biography
Maurice was born in 539 to the House of Arabissinos, a dynasty of Orthodox Christian Greeks from Arabissus, Cappadocia. Maurice was a prominent general of the Byzantine Empire, and he married the daughter of Emperor Tiberius II of Byzantium. Tiberius named him as the heir of the empire before he died in 582, and Maurice succeeded him. He conducted warfare in the Balkans against the Avar Khaganate, winning several campaigns that stabilized the frontier against the Avars and Slavs. He also helped Khusrau II of Persia gain power in the Sassanid Empire, helping to establish peace in the east.

However, his rule was overthrown due to the high costs for maintaining the Byzantine army. He ordered his army to camp on the unprotected northern bank of the Danube River for the winter of 602, but instead, it marched on Constantinople. Its commander proclaimed himself Emperor Phocas of Byzantium, and he had Maurice's six sons executed before his eyes before killing him.